Hokkaido also a hot spot
Plans continue to unfold in Japanese cities that hope to host one of the country’s first three integrated resorts. Osaka, considered a frontrunner in the race, is planning to allocate part of its 2019 budget for an operator selection committee.
According to the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, Osaka Prefecture and the city of Osaka have jointly earmarked JPY2.15 million (US$20,000) of its budget for a selection committee to choose the assumed casino operator. As host of the upcoming 2025 World Expo, with all the infrastructure improvements that portends, Osaka is seen by many as a cinch to win a coveted IR license too. Osaka hosted the 1970 World Expo as well.
On New Year’s Day, Inside Asian Gaming reports, the IR Local Alliance of Osaka, made up of small-to-medium business owners, launched its own campaign, including a video promotion to be shown in the city’s 3,000 taxis. In December, wrap advertising on city buses also promoted the benefits of IRs to the area.
The push will continue with the Osaka IR Promotion Bureau, a partnership of the city and prefecture established in April 2017, which will add to its staff this year for a total of 38 members and operate with a reported JPY330 million (US$3 million) budget. Global gaming operators vying for the Osaka license could come from a list that includes giants like MGM Resorts, Las Vegas Sands and Melco Resorts & Entertainment, IAG reported.
Similar pro-casino efforts are afoot in Hokkaido, reported Asia Gaming Brief. Seven global operators were expected to attend the Hokkaido IR Showcase last week; they include Hard Rock International, Mohegan, SJM Holdings, Caesars Entertainment, Melco, Rush Street, and Clairvest.
U.S.-based Rush Street is about to launch a new online platform called “My Tomakomai,” laying the groundwork for its bid for a regional Japanese casino license. Company founder Neil Bluhm told IAG the company’s regional experience makes it the right choice to operate a Hokkaido casino-resort.
“As the creator of the world’s first ever gaming facility to be recognized for its green design, materials and practices, Rush Street Japan adopts a unique approach to building environmentally-sensitive properties from the ground up,” Bluhm said. “The company’s mission is to respect the natural environment, as well as the needs of the local community, was the key to success in the development and operation of the first and only IRs in five locations across North America, including the Capital Region of New York State and Niagara Falls, Ontario.”
GGRAsia reported that Japanese-based tourism and hospitality firm Kamori Kanko Co. Ltd. is also proposing to develop a casino resort in Hokkaido, a popular holiday island. In a news release, Kamori Kanko described a blueprint that includes 1,300 hotel rooms, spas, restaurants, bars and lounges, shop space, 25,000 square meters (270,000 square feet) of meeting facilities and a gaming area covering 6,800 square meters (73,200 square feet). The gaming area would account for “approximately 2.9 percent of the resort’s total gross floor area,” according to the release, in keeping with Japan’s proposed cap of 3 percent of gross floor space for gaming.
Hard Rock’s proposed master plan for Hokkaido includes 1,500 rooms and 200,000 square feet of retail, a Broadway-style showplace, a Hard Rock Live concert arena with capacity for 10,000, cherry-blossom parks and a wellness center.
